This disclosure relates to a medical device and more particularly to an implantable stimulation lead anchor for fastening a therapy delivery element such as a stimulation lead or catheter to a human body.
The medical device industry produces a wide variety of electronic and mechanical devices for treating medical conditions. Depending upon the medical condition, medical devices can be surgically implanted or connected externally to the patient receiving treatment. Clinicians use medical devices alone or in combination with therapeutic substance therapies and surgery to treat medical conditions. For some medical conditions, medical devices provide the best, and sometimes the only, therapy to restore an individual to a more healthful condition and a fuller life. One type of medical device is an implantable neurostimulator.
A neurostimulator such as an InterStim® Model 3023 available from Medtronic, Inc. in Minneapolis, Minn. can be used to treat conditions such as pain and pelvic floor disorders. The neurostimulator is typically connected to a stimulation lead to deliver electrical stimulation to a specific location in the patient's body. When the stimulation lead is inserted or implanted, it is typically anchored using a lead anchor to fix the stimulation lead to tissue. The lead anchor is important for the insertion or implantation procedure because the lead anchor is intended to prevent the stimulation lead from migrating away from a specifically selected stimulation site. In order to reduce lead migration, it is often desirable to anchor the stimulation lead in the same plane that the stimulation lead was inserted. The anchor is often used during surgical procedures where there is limited space to insert the anchor, limited space to operate the anchor, limited space to secure the anchor to tissue, and time constraints to complete the procedure rapidly. For some procedures, installing the anchor can be one of the most time consuming and invasive portions of the stimulation lead insertion procedure. Clinicians inserting and anchoring therapy delivery elements typically prefer to perform the procedure rapidly, in a minimally invasive manner, and fix the therapy delivery element in a manner that reduces the opportunity for the therapy delivery element to migrate if practicable. Previous stimulation lead anchors can have one or more of the following limitations along with other limitations such as being difficult to use for minimally invasive procedures, difficult to secure the simulation lead in the same plane as the stimulation lead was inserted, and inconvenient actuation from an open position to a closed position, and the like. Examples of some previous stimulation lead anchors are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,134,477 “Adjustable Medical Lead Fixation System” by Knuteson (Oct. 17, 2000); U.S. Pat. No. 5,484,445 “Sacral Lead Anchoring System” by Knuth (Jan. 16, 1996); and, U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,146 “Adjustable Medical Lead Anchor” by Cross, Jr. (Dec. 1, 1998).
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a therapy delivery element anchor that facilitates minimally invasive procedures, facilitates securing the therapy delivery element in the same plane as the therapy delivery element was inserted, facilitates rapid placement to reduce procedure time, and has many other improvements.